Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Alister Jack and Steven Bonnar

Wednesday 17th May 2023 Commons Chamber

[Steven Bonnar (Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill) (SNP)]

10. What recent steps he has taken with the Scottish Government to promote Scotland overseas.

[The Secretary of State for Scotland (Mr Alister Jack)]

As the UK Government in Scotland, we have an important role in promoting Scotland internationally. The Scotland Office, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, the Department for Business and Trade, and Scottish Development International work together to identify opportunities for trade and investment—a recent example being the Tartan Week celebrations held in New York.

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[Mr Jack]

The UK wants to promote Scotland’s food and drink industry and to promote renewables and the sale of renewables—for instance, to Vietnam—and we do that through trade deals. I say to the SNP: “Get behind the UK Government. Get behind the trade deals we’re doing. You’ve never found one you liked so far. Start supporting them!”

[Steven Bonnar]

For the seventh year in a row, Scotland has been ranked the best performing nation or region outside London for foreign direct investment. That continues the trend of Scotland being the best performing nation in the United Kingdom. This investment has been achieved by the Scottish Government working to promote Scotland’s culture, innovative research and industrial strength overseas. Rather than continuing to undermine the work of the Scottish Government, should the right hon. Gentleman’s Government not be learning lessons from them on how to encourage wider foreign investment into England?

[Mr Jack]

The hon. Gentleman should not be taking all the credit: that work is done by the United Kingdom Government. We have 282 embassies, high commissions and consulates in 180 countries, we work very hard promoting Scotland’s interests overseas and Scotland has a wonderful Foreign Secretary in the form of my right hon. Friend the Member for Braintree (James Cleverly).

Scottish Independence and the Scottish Economy

Debate between Alister Jack and Steven Bonnar

Wednesday 2nd November 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mr Jack]

I fear that the SNP’s constant campaign—its neverendum campaign to leave the United Kingdom—acts like a millstone around the neck of the Scottish economy.

[Steven Bonnar]

I appreciate the Secretary of State giving way. We often hear that we do not respect the result of the referendum. I joined the SNP one week after the referendum. I was sent here to protect Scotland from Brexit and to fight for Scottish independence. Is that not taking part in the democracy of our country? I was not a member of the SNP then; I joined one week after the referendum, and I was elected to this place to help deliver Scotland’s path to independence. That is democracy.

[Mr Jack]

That simply is not democracy, because the hon. Member is not respecting the result of the referendum in 2014. As we heard from the right hon. Member for Ross, Skye and Lochaber, there was confusion and, in that referendum, the Scottish National party was proposing that Scotland leave the EU. We have just heard a whole speech on how desperate the SNP is to get back into the EU, yet in 2014 the proposal made was that Scotland would leave—

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Alister Jack and Steven Bonnar

Wednesday 15th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Steven Bonnar (Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill) (SNP)]

3. What recent assessment he has made of the implications of allegations of standards impropriety for his Department’s work on strengthening the Union.

[The Secretary of State for Scotland (Mr Alister Jack)]

We remain focused on delivering for Scotland within a strong United Kingdom. This can be seen by the scale of our investment, with more than £191 million of UK Government funding being invested directly in community projects across Scotland. This is real devolution in action.

[Steven Bonnar]

People in Scotland have rejected the Tories for the past 50 years. We decisively rejected the Prime Minister’s Brexit projects, and we rejected them once again at the last election. Some 65% of people in Scotland say that the Prime Minister is totally corrupt and 65% of people in Scotland also believe he should resign. Given that this coincides with a surge in independence, with more than half of the population in Scotland now supporting independence and the Scottish National party, does the Secretary of State agree that the corruption of the UK Government is driving Scots away from the Union? If he were truly interested in saving the Union, should he not be joining the rest of us in calling for the PM’s resignation?

[Mr Jack]

I will stick to the question, which is what we are doing to deliver for the people of Scotland, and I am delighted to answer that question. I will give the hon. Gentleman one example: with the Union connectivity review, there are huge opportunities to improve transport links between Scotland and the rest of the United Kingdom, and I am dismayed that Members on the Opposition Benches refuse to support that.